I am sore. Normally I'm not sore until the second or third day, but I'm already sore. At 5:30 this morning, I rolled out of bed and headed to Chantilly to meet my personal trainer. His name is John, and he actually looks like the black version of my ex, also named John. So that was bizarre. But it's ok because he's pretty cool and I think he's the kind of person I would like working with. Unfortunately, he's also the most expensive trainer at the studio, so if I were to stay there, I would likely try to get someone else who was a little less expensive.
Anyway, I got on the treadmill to warm up, then the real fun began. And by fun, I mean he kicked my ass for 40 minutes and I wanted to curl up in a ball and die. I'm not sure if the muscles between my boobs and my armpits are my pecs, but if they are, then my pecs hurt. We did range of motion, which isn't a problem, then I did that thing where you have to step onto a bench. Then we did bench press, then dead lift, then other things, then measuring (ugh). It wasn't so bad except that my muscles are screaming out for relief.
I was actually pretty happy to learn that things are not as bad as they would seem. He gave me what I felt was a reasonable number for where my weight should be, which he based on eyeballing my frame. I appreciate that, because I have a huge frame and generally where I would fall for a recommended weight would put me solidly into the skin-and-bones category. I also was pretty happy with the weight I was able to lift. Through my post-workout research, I've found that most women can't lift the Olympic bar (45 pound bar with no weights used for free weights), which explains why he started me on a 30 pound bar. After 20 reps of that, we went to just the 45 pound bar and when I was able to do that, he added on 5 pounds. I made it through about 6 reps of that with him pushing me along, which is exactly why I need a personal trainer. If I were on my own, I would go "Ok, well 45 felt good for 5 reps, so I'm done." With a spotter and encouragement and someone to be accountable to besides myself, I was able to do a lot more and feel good about it.
I also had to fill out a questionnaire and when it asked me if I was sedentary, I circled in between the "yes" and the "no" options. John disagreed and told me I definitely was active, which I appreciated. I don't always feel active because I sit behind a desk all day, but I try to do something on a regular basis. I guess compared to the majority of the population, I am pretty active and for someone my size, I'm relatively fit.
Overall, I was really happy with it. This session was free, as are the next three that I have through a Groupon. Then I have 10 sessions that I got at a place in Reston through Groupon as well, so that should be a good comparison. If I really want to continue with personal training, I might work on finding a way to budget it in. I have to view it as an investment made in my health and not as money being spent for nothing. My health and fitness are things that will benefit me no matter what happens in the future, so I should definitely spend money on them.
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